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Surrey Biking in Ventura

The store is situated where the Ventura Beach Bike Path links up with the Ojai Bike Path.  There is free parking for customers so you can start and end the ride from the shop located under the Ojai 33 Freeway overpass on Main Street in Ventura.  There are plenty of different kinds of bikes to choose from!

Ventura is just an hour's drive from Los Angeles and Hollywood, between Malibu and Santa Barbara, overlooking Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands.  It is located along the scenic southern-most part of California's Central Coast. Year round daytime temperatures average 70 degrees F.  Early Spanish settlers dubbed Ventura the "land of endless summers".

People have lived along this stretch of the California coast for at least ten thousand years. San Buenaventura was founded in 1782 by Father Junipero Serra, the ninth of the California missions.  He named it after the Italian St. Bonaventure, hence the nickname that Ventura is the “city of good fortune.”

Ventura Bike Depot
239 W Main St
Ventura, CA 93001
http://www.venturabikedepot.com/

Directions:  About an hour from our area.  Take the US-101 N for about 60 miles and take exit 70A for California St and turn right.  Take the first left onto E Thompson Blvd.  Continue straight on S Garden Street and turn left onto Main St. 

ICE at Santa Monica

Once a year, Downtown Santa Monica brings a little skate to the surf and transforms the corner of 5th Street and Arizona Avenue into ICE at Santa Monica, an outdoor ice skating rink. Celebrating its 5th Anniversary, the 8,000 square ft. rink by the beach offers residents and visitors a little taste of winter without the bite.  It's a great place to hang out with friends, family, and loved ones, throw a party in a private event cabana, enjoy a first date, or sign up for skate lessons.

Admission is just $12 and it is almost always open.  To see the schedule, visit the website: http://iceatsantamonica.com/

It's also super pretty at night! 

ICE at Santa Monica

1324 5th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Escondido Falls Hike

The road that leads to the dirt trail.  Really pretty houses here along Winding Way.

On the walk to the trail.

Accessed from Pacific Coast Highway about a mile south of Kanan Road in Malibu, the trail through Escondido Canyon Natural Area leads hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians 4.2 miles through oak woodland, riparian woodland, and Coastal sage scrub to the spectacular, multi-tiered 150-foot Escondido Falls—the highest in the Santa Monica Mountains. Allow yourself at least two hours to enjoy this trail and spectacular waterfall. From the parking lot the trailhead is a one mile walk up the paved road. At the Escondido Canyon Trailhead sign, head to the left, walking upstream. The trail criss-crosses the creek several times and then opens onto grassy flats. A mile into the trail you will reach the base of the waterfall. This is the lower tier of the huge limestone fall. The upper tier is 150 feet tall with a deep pool at its base.

First waterfall.

Stream that criss-crosses the path throughout the trail.

Second tier of the waterfall- a little tricky to get to, involves climbing over some large rocks.

You have to use these ropes to help you climb up to the third tier of the waterfall- it's a little tricky and slippery.  Only for the brave!  I fell, so be very careful.  Many just go to the first waterfall (which is still totally worth it).

Third part of the waterfall is the most beautiful!

VERY top of the waterfall!

Escondido Falls
27200 Winding Way
Malibu, CA 90265

Directions: The parking lot is on Winding Way East at Pacific Coast Highway. Park cars here and walk north along Winding Way East (private road) for a mile to the dirt trail that starts at the end of the paved road.

Historic Greystone Mansion and Park

Incredible getaway for a lazy afternoon - free and SO close!

In 1926, Edward Laurence Doheny gifted his son Edward “Ned” Laurence Doheny Jr., and his daughter-in-law Lucy, with a 12.58 acres parcel of land. Greystone mansion was built on this land at a cost of $3,135,563 (That's about $50 million with inflation today!). It became the most expensive home built in California up to that point. The city purchased Greystone and the grounds for $1,100,000 on November 3, 1965. The grounds were converted into a park and a site for a 19,300,000 gallon subsurface reservoir.   The City of Beverly Hills formally dedicated Greystone Park in 1971. On April 23, 1976 Greystone was added to the Department of Interior’s National Register of Historic Places.

Today, Greystone serves as the setting for a myriad of cultural and educational activities. Movies, commercials, T.V. shows and photo shoots are a major source of revenue for the upkeep of Greystone as are the exclusive weddings and reception sites located throughout the grounds. Most of all, Greystone provides the visitor with the opportunity for a quiet moment in a pastoral park, offering sweeping panoramic views of the city below, moments away from a busy urban environment.

The interior is 18th century in style and includes fifty-five livable rooms in 46,054 square feet on 12.58 acres, including the entertainment wing consisting of a theater, bowling alley and billiard room.

The most recent movie filmed was The Social Network in 2010 and others include Super Hero (2008) , National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007), Spider Man III (2007), There Will be Blood (2007), The Holiday (2006), The Prestige (2006), Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties (2006), Charlie's Angels Full Throtle (2002), Austin Powers: Goldmember (2002) and MANY more! 

You're only allowed to explore the grounds (which are incredibly fabulous)- exterior only and not interior. But it's such a beautiful place to hang - feels like another world! Cool things to see - turtles jumping off rocks and diving into the water, waterfalls, streams, gorgeous trees and lawns and architecture.... Definitely bring a camera!

Historic Greystone Mansion and Park
905 Loma Vista Drive
Beverly Hills, 90210
http://www.greystonemansion.org/

Directions: Head West on Sunset Blvd and turn right on Doheny Drive.  After about half a mile, turn right on Loma Vista Drive.  Only about 10 minutes away from our area!